A refreshing breeze blew as the new school year began. On their second day, Sekai and Jessyka were waiting for the announcement of which class they would be in.
Jessyka clung to Sekai's arm as they sat on a bench in the school courtyard.
"Jessy… can you let go? It's still really hot," Sekai said, fanning himself with his shirt.
"No!" Jessyka said, pressing his arm even closer to her chest.
The girl still seemed uneasy after everything that had happened recently. Sekai wasn't hurt, and nothing serious had happened, but that wasn't enough to calm her nerves.
"It's fine, Jessy. Nothing happened, I'm okay."
Jessyka lifted her head and looked into Sekai's eyes with an expression full of worry and insecurity—like a lost puppy. Sekai's cheeks turned slightly red. Jessyka leaned toward him slowly, pouting and closing her eyes.
"I'm not going to kiss you," Sekai said, his expression flat.
"Tsk," Jessyka clicked her tongue.
"Sekai! The atmosphere was perfect! Why do you always have to ruin these moments?" she said, crossing her arms and puffing her cheeks.
Sekai chuckled a little and poked her inflated cheeks with his finger, making her exhale.
"Haha, you look like a hamster, Jessy," he said with a smile.
"Geez, Sekai, why don't you ever take me seriously…" Jessyka sighed.
A few meters away, a boy appeared carrying some posters. He walked up to a board outside the school, near where Sekai and Jessyka were sitting. He pinned up the papers and left. A crowd of first-year students soon gathered around the board; after checking, some began to leave.
"Look, Sekai, I think they posted the class assignments," Jessyka said, pointing with her right arm, the one adorned with the pearl bracelet.
"Great, let's see which class we're in."
By the time they approached, most students had already gone, so they didn't have trouble reaching the board.
However, what caught everyone's attention wasn't the list—it was Jessyka's beauty. Her red hair and graceful curves made it hard for the boys not to stare. It was like looking at a work of art.
"Well, Sekai, it's not like I need to look. The class doesn't matter as long as we're together. Destiny would never separate us!"
"It says I'm in Class B," Sekai said.
"And I'm in… Class C…"
Jessyka stared at the board for a few seconds. She closed her eyes, opened them again, but the result didn't change.
"Class C… Impossible! THIS HAS TO BE A MISTAKE!!" Jessyka shouted.
"Jessy, please don't make a scene!" Sekai said, clearly embarrassed.
"Sekai! This can't be right! They must have rigged it to separate us on purpose!" she shouted, visibly distressed.
"Maybe it was random. I don't think it was on purpose."
"No, Sekai! I refuse to believe that! We've always been in the same class—elementary school, preschool, even the crib we shared!"
"Well… our parents were kinda broke back then…"
"This is fraud! Corruption! Manipulation! I demand a recount!"
"This isn't an election, Jessyka…"
"I'm tearing that paper down!" Jessyka declared, marching toward the board.
Sekai grabbed her by the waist.
"Jessy, calm down! You're going too far! Ripping the papers won't change anything."
"That boy who put up the posters—he must have some position at school! He's probably part of the student council!"
"How can you be so sure? Maybe they just asked him to post them."
"I know! I'll go complain directly to that blonde girl! She's definitely behind this!"
"Jessy, please don't cause trouble for the president…"
At that moment, Jessyka's eyes darkened. The light in her irises faded as she stared at Sekai, as if peering straight into his soul. A chill ran down his spine.
"Je–Jessy… what… what are those eyes…"
"So, you're defending her now? You liked that blonde girl when she was on stage, didn't you? You fell for her, didn't you? Tell me, Sekai… are you going to replace me with her?" she asked, her voice flat and emotionless.
"No… I just don't want to bother her with something like this…" Sekai felt an even colder chill as Jessyka tilted her head slightly to the side.
"Jessy… you're scaring me…" Sekai said, clearly unsettled by Jessyka's behavior.
"What's going on here?"
A stunning blonde girl appeared behind Jessyka. Sekai, who was in front of her, tilted his head and caught sight of the newcomer.
"Oh, you're… the student council president!"
"Yes, that's me. Nice to meet you. My name is Guina."
"Ah, nice to meet you. I'm Sekai, and this is my cousin Jessyka."
"I see. Welcome, both of you. So, what's the problem? Why all the commotion?"
"My cousin's just upset because we're not in the same class. She thinks someone interfered or something. But I think it was just luck, right?"
"Oh, that? Yes, I separated you two," Guina said calmly.
"Eh?" Sekai blinked in confusion.
"Eh?" Guina tilted her head.
"EEEEHHH?!" Jessyka screamed loud enough for the whole courtyard to hear.